Algorhythmic from Aon² has been working on speech recognition with his Raspberry Pi, and has a very nice video demo of a voice-controlled robot he’s been building, with full instructions on how to get something similar working yourself. (Edit to add, 12 Jul: the arm itself is available in the UK from Maplin – it’s currently in the sale at £29.99.)

We thought this was fantastic. If this is a project you’re going to try to replicate at home, it’s worth noting that for some arcane reason, a USB webcam like the one Algorhythmic is using in the video (which, of course, contains a microphone) is often cheaper than a dedicated USB microphone on its own. Let us know how you get on!

I’m absolutely gobsmacked you made an entire blog post about my project! Thanks! I’m currently working on my next robotic project now using the Raspberry Pi, it’s absolutely amazing – I’ll be posting up more stuff soon! ^__^

I think it is a great proof of concept for voice activated computing, I am considering (when the RasPi gets more available) doing some home automation based on this project.
Being able to turn lights on and off, turn the Coffee maker on etc would be fantastic!
Sure the voice controlled robotic arm isn’t the most useful application, but as a proof of concept it is absolutely AWESOME!